8. Some and Any

Some and any are determiners or quantifiers (determiners include quantifiers) modifying or quantifying the nouns that follow them, but do not show how many. Both quantifiers are used in front of plural countable nouns to indicate a number of people or things, and uncountable nouns to show an amount. Any, but not some, can be used in front of a singular countable noun. The verb that follows the noun must agree with it, whether it is singular or plural.

Some and any are determiners indicating a quantity (quantifiers) although a limited one.

Examples:

It's up to you to believe some dinosaursstill exist in the Amazon jungle.

Know which path to take to get there as some paths go through the jungle.

Anydinosaurs found would be headline news in nearly all, if not all, newspapers.

You are late and any excuses are not acceptable.

Some and any are used before plural countable nouns.

Examples:

It sounds like there are some things, not coins,inside the piggy bank.

I have some peanuts for the monkeys.

He may be an adult, but he certainly behaves like any other kids.

We couldn’t find any paintings of Popeye for our new house.

Anyis used in front of a singular countable noun.

Examples:

You can take any bus along this road to the hospital.

Police said the suspect planned to bomb anybuilding including the police headquarters.

I don’t care about the colour; any one will do for me but not black.

Some and any are used before uncountable nouns.

Examples:

She added somewater to dilute the mixture.

We usually have some cold drink at lunchtime.

They think he will die in the hospital bed anyday now.

You can have anysoup you want - chicken or turkey soup.

The verb must agree with the noun that follows any or some.

Examples:

Anygirl who wants to take part in the competition must be strong. (Singular countable noun takes a verb.)

Some guysare at the door asking you to come out. (Plural countable noun is followed by plural verb.)

Here is some news about an explosion in the bus.

Any informationis welcomed by the police to investigate the crime.(News and information are uncountable nouns and are followed by singular verb.)

Some and any can be used to mean one.

Examples:

Some idiotput a box of empty cans on top of my car. (= one idiot)

What type of man does my sister like? She likes any man.

Some and any don’t tell us how many there are, but they can be referred to as a plural form of a and an.

Examples:

Here is a picture of a wild goose.

Here are some pictures of a wild goose.

There is an ostrich in the middle of the highway.

There are some ostriches in the middle of the highway.

We don't see a star tonight.

We don't see any stars tonight.

Is there a neighbour's duck swimming on our pond?

Are there any neighbour's ducks swimming on our pond?

Any is usually used in questions. But sometimes, instead of any, some is used in questions.

Examples:

Questions using any with plural countable noun:

Are there any coins in our piggy bank?

Do you have any names for your pet rabbits?

Questions using any with uncountable noun:

Do you have any money to lend me?

Is there anysugar in my coffee?

Questions using some with plural countable noun or uncountable noun:

Do you want some vegetables to go with it?

Could you spray the plants with some pesticide, please?

Any is used in negative statements.

Examples:

With plural countable nouns:

No: We don't have some biscuits for the dog.

Yes: We don't have any biscuits for the dog.

The bird’s nest hasn't got any eggs in it.

No, there aren't any cockroaches in my kitchen.

With singular uncountable nouns:

No, there isn't any tea in the pot.

She doesn't have any more salt for my so

Some of and any of with plural nouns.

Some of is used in front of a plural noun to point out a number of people or things from a particular group. The words that usually follow some of are the, these, those or a possessive.

Examples:

Every day for years, he got up early to milk some of the goats.

Some of these pet monkeys have been trained to follow simple orders.

Some of thosemigrants are from rural areas.

Some of his socks are not washed for weeks.

You can choose any of the colours for the kitchen wall..

We can easily afford any of these used cars.

We can give to the church jumble sale any of those unwanted things.

He never returned any of the books he borrowed.

Some of and any of with uncountable nouns.

Some of can be used in front of a singular noun phrase to refer to a part of something. The words used are the, this, that or a possessive.

Examples:

Add some of the flour to the mixture.

You can drink some of this lime juice.

Some of thatmoney is to build up some savings.

While there, we spent some of our time watching bats in a cave..

If any of the food is too spicy, just leave it for me.

I wonder if any of this information will be helpful to the police.

I came to ask about this and not to waste any of your time.

Some of and any of + object pronouns.

It's always correct to use a plural object pronoun – us, you, and them – after some of.